Criminal Justice and Corrections at Collin County Community College District

At $28,066 starting out, Collin County's criminal justice program lands in the bottom fifth nationally—and at the 40th percentile within Texas, where competing community colleges like Dallas College and Lone Star consistently place graduates above $37,000. The small sample size (under 30 graduates) demands caution with these figures, but the gap is substantial enough to warrant scrutiny. On the positive side, the debt load is manageable at $9,687, creating a reasonable 0.35 debt-to-earnings ratio that won't crush new graduates.

The 43% earnings jump to $40,177 by year four suggests career progression is possible in law enforcement and corrections roles, though you're still starting from a notably lower base than peers at other Texas community colleges. Given that this is a two-year degree with relatively low debt, the program isn't a financial disaster—but it's not competitive within the state market. If your child has already committed to Collin County for convenience or cost reasons, the low debt mitigates some risk. However, if location is flexible, programs at Dallas College or Lone Star appear to deliver substantially better employment outcomes for similar investment. The data here simply doesn't support choosing Collin County specifically for criminal justice training.